


The Ailment Alienation

by KalaLouise



Category: The Big Bang Theory (TV)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-08
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-19 19:30:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4758197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KalaLouise/pseuds/KalaLouise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sheldon's been feeling under the weather, and he's not his usual annoying self at all.<br/>Leonard and Penny grow worried, and see what they can do to help him.<br/>Will a surprise guest end up being just what Sheldon needs to get him back on his feet?</p>
<p>[CONTAINS S9 SPOILERS! IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW SPOILERS, PLEASE DON'T READ.]</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Ailment Alienation

**Author's Note:**

> This is set after the events of Season 9, episodes 1-3 (after having read the taping reports.)  
> This is purely headcanon and is NOT necessarily what is due to happen on the actual show.  
> Please keep this in mind.  
> This one shot is purely from my own imagination.  
> I don't own any of the characters...
> 
> [CONTAINS S9 SPOILERS! IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW SPOILERS, PLEASE DON'T READ.]

Leonard walked into the kitchen to make breakfast, rubbing his eyes.  
As he busied himself pouring a bowl of cereal, he felt that something was amiss.  
He frowned for a moment, wondering what it was, and then he realized; Sheldon wasn’t anywhere to be seen.  
Usually he would have been up by now, for at least an hour.  
Setting his Lactose-free milk down on the counter, he wandered through the apartment and checked the bathroom.  
Empty.  
His eyes skimmed over to Sheldon’s bedroom door, and blinked in surprise.  
The door was shut.  
Leonard crept towards the door and hesitated before knocking.  
“Sheldon?”  
No answer.  
Leonard grew concerned, so let himself into the room, awaiting a telling-off from Sheldon.  
But nothing came.  
Sheldon was still in bed, facing away from the door.  
“Sheldon?” Leonard asked again, growing worried.  
“What?” came a faint grunt of a reply from Sheldon’s direction.  
“Thank God. I thought you were dead or something!” Leonard sighed in relief.  
“No.” Sheldon responded, “Although I would certainly welcome that over feeling like this.”  
“Are you sick?” Leonard stepped back slightly.  
“I must be.” Sheldon sighed. “I don’t feel myself at all.”  
“Well what’s wrong with you?” Leonard asked, sitting on the end of the bed.  
He expected Sheldon to tell him to get off or leave, but he didn’t.  
“Hmm…Well…I have this pain in my chest. My throat hurts and my face hurts. I have no desire to do anything…Oh, and this keeps happening.” Sheldon leaned up a little, and pointed to his face, which was red and tear stained, his eyes bloodshot.  
“Oh my god Sheldon!” Leonard was shocked. “Do you know what it is? Sounds like the flu.”  
He moved closer to the end of the bed, not wanting to come into contact.  
“That’s what I thought at first.” Sheldon admitted, wiping his eyes, “But I’m not lethargic exactly; I just have no desire to do anything.”  
Leonard nodded, waiting for his roommate to continue.  
“And I don’t have any trouble breathing, no mucus, no cough, no sneezing, no nausea…Although, I don’t have an appetite.” Sheldon finished.  
Frowning, Leonard got to his feet.   
“I’ll be right back.” He said, exiting the room and hurrying across the hall.  
He knocked on the door of 4B, and waited patiently for Penny to answer.  
When she finally did, she was in her pyjamas and her hair slightly messy.  
As soon as she saw Leonard, she smiled. “Hey, hubby!” She kissed him. “When are you moving your stuff in here? You know, like normal married couples?”  
“As soon as Sheldon’s better, I guess.” Leonard replied.  
“Better?” Penny frowned. “Is he sick?”  
“Well…I think so. He doesn’t know what it is. I was wondering if you could give me a hand over here?”   
“Ugh, but Leonard…Sick Sheldon? Really? Not after last time!”  
“He’s nothing like last time Penny. I promise. He’s being very…Un-Sheldon-like. He didn’t even complain that I let myself in my room and sat on the end of the bed to talk to him!”  
Penny stared at Leonard for a second in shock.  
“Oh my God, this is serious!” She followed him across the hall and into apartment 4A, towards Sheldon’s room.  
“Sheldon?” Leonard called through his door.  
Sheldon stirred a little.  
“I brought someone to see you.” Leonard continued.  
“Hey Sheldon. How are you feeling?” Penny asked gently.  
Sheldon shrugged. “I don’t know until I know what I have.”  
Penny gingerly sat on his bed, and Leonard stayed in the doorway.  
“Come on sweetie, how do you think you feel?” She tried to look at him, but Sheldon buried his face in his pillow.  
Penny frowned and turned to look at Leonard, who mimed tears on his face with his fingers.  
Penny understood.  
She turned back to Sheldon.  
“Have you been crying?” She asked softly, and the lump in the bed nodded.  
“Aww Sheldon…”   
A silence fell over the three of them.  
“Do you want me to get you some soup?” Penny asked.  
Sheldon shook his head.  
“I don’t have an appetite.” He responded.  
“How about a drink? More blankets? Open the window? I can sing you Soft Kitty…”  
“No thank you.”  
“Oh…” She looked at Leonard again, who shrugged. “Do you want me and Leonard to take care of you?”  
Leonard groaned. “But Penny!...”  
“No thank you.” Sheldon said, interrupting Leonard.  
Leonard blinked in surprise. “What? Why not?!” He whined.  
Penny just rolled her eyes.  
“I don’t want to burden you.” Sheldon said quietly.   
Leonard and Penny stared at each other in awe, their mouths wide open.  
“Wait a minute! You usually…”  
“Well, if you need anything…” Penny cut Leonard off, “Let us know, okay?”  
“Thank you.” Sheldon said, and buried his face in his pillow again.  
And that was the end of the conversation.  
Penny followed Leonard into the kitchen and sighed.   
“What do you think is wrong with him?”  
“I don’t know, but I think it’s pretty serious.”  
“Really? How come”   
“For one thing, he didn’t even correct your grammar when you said ‘me and Leonard’ instead of ‘Leonard and I’.” Leonard pointed out.  
“Oh my god, you’re right!” Penny gasped. “But, I have an idea…Come with me!”  
She took her husband’s hand and led him across to her apartment.

 

About twenty minutes later, Sheldon’s cellphone started to ring.  
He reached out to his bedside dresser and grabbed it.  
His mom was Face Timing him.  
Sheldon answered; “Mom? When did you get an iPhone?”  
“Oh a few months ago now. Missy helped me with this whole Face ache thing.” Mary replied.  
“It’s Face Time.” Sheldon muttered.  
“Oh, same thing.” Mary said dismissively, “Now, what’s up Shelly? Your friends are really worried about you.”  
“Well I’m not sure. It’s probably only a cold.” Sheldon answered.   
“Ohhh no! I know you, Shelly. If it was a cold, you’d be asking people to take care of you. Leonard and Penny told me you turned down their offers of help completely. Now what’s really wrong?”  
Sheldon shifted uncomfortably, not answering.  
“Your eyes are all red. Have you been crying?” Mary pressed. “It wouldn’t have anything to do with Amy breaking up with you, would it?”  
Sheldon felt his insides flip over at the mention of her name.   
“What? Who told you?” He demanded.  
“Penny did, Sheldon.” Mary told him. “She’s worried about you. So is Leonard…So why did you break up with Amy?”  
“I didn’t. She broke up with me.” Sheldon admitted quietly.  
“Ah…I see.” Mary sympathized. “Is there any way you could reconcile?”  
Sheldon shook his head. “No. She told me it’s over for good.”  
“Nothing is ever definite, Shelly.” Mary comforted, “Apologize to her, sweep her off her feet again.”  
“Me apologize?!” Sheldon was flabbergasted. “But she broke up with me! What makes you think I did anything wrong?”  
“It doesn’t matter if you did or didn’t, Sheldon. Sometimes you need to swallow your pride and be the first to apologize, if you love someone and still want them in your life…Do you love her Shelly?” Mary asked.  
Sheldon’s throat went dry.  
“I have to go now mother. I don’t feel very well.” He ended the call and lay back down.   
He felt his eyes and throat sting again, and a lump rise in his chest, up into his throat.  
‘Not again’ he thought, burying his face in his pillow, letting the tears drop onto it silently.

 

 

An hour later, Sheldon heard a knock at the door of the apartment.  
He didn’t hear any movement in the apartment for a few moments, so he pushed the covers back, and called out to his roommate.  
“Leonard!”  
No reply.  
“Leonard? Please can you answer the door?”  
Nothing.  
Sheldon sighed and pulled himself out of bed, as he heard another knock.  
Gingerly, he answered it and froze as he saw Amy standing there.  
He tried to speak but nothing came out.  
“Hello Sheldon.” Amy greeted.  
“H-Hello?” Sheldon responded, curiously.   
“I just came to see how you were.” Amy said, “May I come in?”  
Sheldon said nothing but opened the door wider, nodding.  
Amy passed him and placed a grocery bag on the kitchen table, before turning to face him.  
“Your mother called.” She explained, “Penny and Leonard gave her my number. They’re all worried about you. You’re sick or something.”  
Sheldon swallowed hard.  
“Well, I don’t feel myself.” He confessed in a low voice.  
“I know…I brought you some soup. I know you turned Penny’s down; she told me. But I know you like the chicken soup that I make.” Amy told him, “So um…I hear Penny and Leonard had a lovely time in San Francisco.”  
Sheldon nodded. “They did.”  
“I wonder why they went there of all places?” Amy mused.  
“I gave them the tickets.” Sheldon admitted.  
Amy looked at him. “Really? That was very thoughtful of you. But, why San Francisco?”  
“I already had the tickets.” Sheldon answered, uncomfortably, “Actually…I got them for us.”  
Amy looked at him softly, “Sheldon…”  
“Then when we broke up, I had no use for them. And I wanted my friends to have a honeymoon, so I gave them my tickets.” Sheldon finished.  
He sat down wordlessly on his spot on the couch.   
Amy hovered for a moment before sitting beside him. “That was really sweet of you.”   
“Well, I’m a sweet person.” Sheldon shrugged.  
“You do have your moments, I guess.” Amy smiled.  
Silence fell over the former couple, and eventually, Sheldon spoke;  
“I’m sorry.”  
Amy frowned, “What for?”  
“I don’t know. My mom told me to apologize to you for whatever I did.” Sheldon replied.   
“Oh.”  
“She said that if I really love you, I need to swallow my pride and apologize.”  
Amy stared at him. “You still love me?”  
“I think that’s why I’ve been feeling sick.” Sheldon nodded.  
“Thanks Sheldon.” Amy frowned.  
“No, I mean…I feel empty. I’m not, because I have all of my internal organs and muscle, bone, tissue…”  
“Yeah, I get the picture. I am a biologist.”  
“Right, of course. Sorry. But, my chest feels empty almost. And my gut. And not just because I haven’t eaten properly in days.” Sheldon said.  
Amy looked at him quizzically. “You haven’t eaten?”  
Sheldon shook his head. “Not properly anyway. Not since…Well.”  
“Since the day we broke up?” Amy whispered, and Sheldon nodded.  
Amy bit her lip and looked down, slipping her cellphone out of her pocket, typing away.  
“What are you doing?” Sheldon asked.  
“Is this what you feel like?” Amy asked, holding up her phone and showing Sheldon a list of symptoms.  
He scanned the list.  
“Yes, all of that! Oh no. What is it?!”  
Amy sighed and scrolled up, showing him the title.  
“Heartbreak symptoms.” He read.   
His eyes widened. “I’m heartbroken?!”  
“I know. Shocking, right? You are human!” Amy joked lightly.  
Her eyes reddened and a tear fell.  
“Why are you crying?” Sheldon asked.   
“Because it’s my fault. I broke your heart.” Amy replied, wiping her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Sheldon. I honestly didn’t think you’d be affected by it. I’ve been heartbroken, too.”  
“You have?”   
“Yes. But I put on a brave face because I don’t want people’s pity. I just want it to stop hurting.”  
She covered her eyes, and Sheldon’s eyes stung.  
Not again!  
He swallowed the lump in his throat and hesitantly moved closer to Amy, timidly putting his arms around her.  
Amy hugged him back, and for once, he didn’t flinch or make a comment.  
“After a few moments, they composed themselves.  
“I miss you.” Sheldon said in a quiet voice. “And for the record, yes, I do love you.”  
Amy swallowed. “I still love you too.”  
“When you broke up with me…Well, I had something else I wanted to talk to you about.” Sheldon blurted.   
He got to his feet and opened his desk drawer, bringing out a small box.  
Wordlessly, he padded back towards the couch and sat back down.  
Amy’s heart was thumping.  
“What’s that?” She asked.  
“It’s a ring.” Sheldon admitted, and opened the box. “I bought the San Francisco tickets for us because there was an event there that I thought you might like. And I was going to ask you to…Well. I think the ring speaks for itself.” He placed the box on the table, and looked down at his feet.  
Amy was speechless.  
She reached for the box and opened it, revealing a diamond engagement ring.  
“Oh my gosh…” She gasped.  
Placing it back on the table, she looked at Sheldon tearfully. “And that’s why you Skyped me that evening?”  
Sheldon nodded. “I was going to ask you to come to San Francisco with me at the weekend because I had a surprise for you.”  
“And I broke up with you.” Amy whispered, sadly. “Because I thought you weren’t serious about us. Because we’d been together for so many years, and you still wouldn’t even make out with me. But…”  
Sheldon just raised his eyebrows and looked down.  
Amy didn’t know what to say.  
What could she say?!  
“I know you’ve waited a long time for any real commitment out of me, and you’re right. I wasn’t fair to you. It wasn’t fair of me to make you wait. Along with my own fears, I also wanted to be a gentleman and not rush you into anything.” Sheldon spoke at last. “I thought that’s what women wanted?”  
“We do. But not that slow.” Amy shrugged, embarrassed. “I can’t believe you did this.”  
It was Sheldon’s turn to shrug his shoulders; “Well…I did. Because I’d been thinking about it. You and I have shared a lot, been through a lot, and grown a lot…All together. And to be honest, I’ve enjoyed every moment of it. There’s no other person I can honestly say that about. I wanted to share more experiences with you. Because…Well, I love you.” He said.  
Amy’s eyes began to water. “Oh Sheldon!”   
She flung her arms around him, almost knocking him backwards.  
“So does this mean we’re back together?” He croaked.  
Amy untangled her arms from around his neck. “Yes.”  
“Alright. Then there’s one more question I need to ask you.” Sheldon took a breath. “Amy…Will you marry me?”  
She looked at him and smiled, shaking her head softly. “No, Sheldon.”  
“No?! But…”  
“But I want to be your girlfriend again.” She cut in; “We can work towards engagement soon. Let’s just… take it slow.”  
Sheldon frowned. “Take it slow?! I thought that was the reason you broke up with me in the first place?”  
“You know what I mean.”  
“No, I don’t.”  
“Okay, well I mean we go at a normal pace like any other couple. And when and if you choose you really do want to marry me, then I’ll say yes. You didn’t need to propose to me to keep me, Sheldon. It wasn’t marriage I wanted from you. I only wanted a sign that we had any hope for the future as a couple.”   
“But…I do want to marry you. Soon.” Sheldon said.  
“We’ll get there, I promise.” Amy answered. “We have other things to conquer first.”  
“You’re right.” Sheldon nodded, and leaned in to kiss her.  
They made out on the couch for a few minutes, and then broke apart.  
Amy looked at him. “You didn’t say anything this time!” She looked surprised.  
“I didn’t feel it was necessary this time.” Sheldon replied.   
Amy kissed him again, and then snuggled up to him.  
For once, Sheldon didn’t flinch or move away.  
He miraculously felt better, much to his surprise.  
Through a crack in the door, Leonard and Penny were peeking through.  
“I told you!” Penny whispered. “It was heartbreak all along. That’s ten bucks you owe me.”  
Leonard took his wallet out of his back pocket and handed over the money, shaking his head.  
“Well, I can’t believe it. Sheldon actually has human feelings!” He said.   
“I know.” Penny agreed, “But he won’t when he catches us eavesdropping. Come on!”   
She took Leonard’s hand and they crept back to 4B, leaving ‘Shamy’ cuddling on the couch.  
All that could be heard from 4B was Leonard’s voice; “Oh crap. What have we done? Now he’s going to go back to his old self!”

The end.


End file.
